Mindset and Ability of a Bogey Golfer

[virtuocity]

Interested to get everyone's views on how an 18 handicapper performs and think's their way round to play to their handicap.

I'm aiming to be at this level by the end of the year.

As I'm probably a 28 handicap, my main goals are:

-To make a good connection with as many shots as possible (i.e. no duffs, tops or fat shots)
-To make my putting average 2.0
-Shoot no more than double bogey on any hole

As an 18 handicapper, the goals / performance requirements must change a good bit in order to play to HCP. Would be interested to read the difference between a 28 and 18 hacker.

 

[TheJezster]

I just take each hole as it comes and dont try to think too far ahead or too far backwards (no point in thinking youre on for a good score, just concentrate on what your doing)

Personally I try not to think too much about it, you state youre looking to average 2 for putting etc, and I see a lot of people on here talk about their %GIR etc. I havent got a bloody clue what mine are, I dont count. I dont see the need, I know how well ive done by the score I make on each hole. Birdie, great, par, more than happy, bogey, hmmm it'll do, worse, ****, lets really concentrate next shot.

I know that stats and analysing your own game appeals to many and works for some, but for me I just want to play golf and enjoy it, and have a laugh wit the guys im playing with. It's working for me so far, I'm down to 17 now and can see me going a fair bit lower over the next few months too.

Not sure if this helps or not, but just hitting each shot in turn and not thinking about the stats etc works for me.

Good luck

 

[Rooter]

I am currently on 18 (ish, not official, just by the online tracking)

My main goals have changed this year, last year i started thinking i was better than i actually was, was trying to play pro golf with an 18'cap ability.. That saw me quite often hit high 90's and low 20 points... I was going for everything!! but at times it worked! (rarely) but i did shoot 79 round a par 72! (once!! and then the week after shot 94!!!)

I have learnt a lot about course management and ability management... While the guy i am playing with off 6 may hit a long iron 190yrd with a high draw to within 15 feet, i now know, i am probably better off taking a 7 iron, and leaving a nice simple chip/pitch.

Also i had a problem with trying to smash everything off the tee, i am quite a big hitter with the driver, but i really need to reign it in by at least 20%, as pointed out on a lot of posts recently, where would you rather be?

280 yards from the tee in some horrible rough/trees/OOB
240 yards in the middle of the fairway

I want to get my putts per round under 36 as often as possible, also have invested in some new wedges so am really looking to improve my scrambling/par making when i inevitably miss the green (usually right!!)

So in short, my main aim is to THINK my way round a course, not just go for the club that hits either the furthest off the tee or the hail mary 220yrd pin with a hybrid/long iron.

 

[HawkeyeMS]

Interested to get everyone's views on how an 18 handicapper performs and think's their way round to play to their handicap.

I'm aiming to be at this level by the end of the year.

As I'm probably a 28 handicap, my main goals are:

-To make a good connection with as many shots as possible (i.e. no duffs, tops or fat shots)
-To make my putting average 2.0
-Shoot no more than double bogey on any hole

As an 18 handicapper, the goals / performance requirements must change a good bit in order to play to HCP. Would be interested to read the difference between a 28 and 18 hacker.

I think he answer to this is the same for any h'cap...

1) Understand & trust your ability
2) Play the game 1 shot at a time
3) Don't let the last shot affect the next one
4) Accept your mistakes
5) Keep calm

That should do it.

 

[El Bandito]

Just got to 18. But 18.4 - so maybe for only one round

Got to agree with the previous posts. For me - being less ambitious (or idiotic) is the big one. There are times when two wedges is likely to get me closer to the hole than a 4 iron and whatever I need to hit to recover! The quote in Hawkeye's signature is not a bad mantra. That fella knows a thing or two about golf.

I am not sure the goals do change that much as the handicap changes - the competence does. I rarely duff a 7 iron now (Guaranteed to on Saturday having written that down!) - nor do I often hit it 40 yards left of where I intended - so it is a lower risk shot now than it was for me at HCP 28.

For me:

1. Enjoy it!
2. Course Management (Plan from the hole to the tee, not the other way around!)
3. Club UP!
4. Putt well.
5. Accept and enjoy the cockups! They are going to happen.

Good luck in your quest!

 

[bigslice]

your first season with a handicap. just play golf enjoy it. at the end of the season have a think where you want to be, then set some targets.
me season 1 handicap 16
season 2 handicap 18
season 3 handicap 21
season 4 handicap 11 (included a 70 gross around a par 66 course)
all i did was play golf i didnt worry about things. i will show you where to you want to be around the royal kinharvie lol

 

[duncan mackie]

yep - that...........

"Golf is a game where you have to understand yourself. You have to understand what your abilities are and you have to play within your own abilities. And if you get outside of that, that's when you get beat" - Jack Nicklaus

generally translated for higher handicaps this means that if you aren't confident in making a stroke with a particular club (say 60/40 or better that you will put a reasonable swing on it and make a reasonable contact etc). when you aren't going for the green work back to the largest target area, avoidance of hazards etc to influence your club selection rather than always grabbing your hybrid (for example) because you are 'OK' with that one.

 

[Region3]

yep - that...........

"Golf is a game where you have to understand yourself. You have to understand what your abilities are and you have to play within your own abilities. And if you get outside of that, that's when you get beat" - Jack Nicklaus

generally translated for higher handicaps this means that if you aren't confident in making a stroke with a particular club (say 60/40 or better that you will put a reasonable swing on it and make a reasonable contact etc). when you aren't going for the green work back to the largest target area, avoidance of hazards etc to influence your club selection rather than always grabbing your hybrid (for example) because you are 'OK' with that one.

I like this quote that basically says the same thing.

"Play the shot you know you can play, not the one you think you ought to be able to play."

 

[JustOne]

At your level I'd say your main thoughts would be to (1) Hit the ball (2) Keep it in play

Don't waste shots by losing the ball or duffing them. Don't swing out of your shoes just to top, thin or slice the ball... or (heaven forbid) lose it.

 

[Akie]

Some good advice above. Even if you do completely top one then just take a minute to calm yourself and concentrate on your next shot. Even golfers with handicaps around 18 are prone to completely awful shots but they don't let it haunt them for the rest of the hole/round.

 

[HawkeyeMS]

Some good advice above. Even if you do completely top one then just take a minute to calm yourself and concentrate on your next shot. Even golfers with handicaps around scratch are prone to completely awful shots but they don't let it haunt them for the rest of the hole/round.

Fixed that for you

 

[Akie]

Fixed that for you

I don't play anywhere near scratch and haven't played with anyone there so didn't want to include them incase I was wrong

 

[Birchy]

Understand your ability and play the percentage shot every time. You should look at each shot and work out according to your ability which method/selection etc will produce a better score more often than not and go for that. Your best option will change as you get better and then you can just adjust accordingly.

Like one wise old fella said to me when i was pretty new. Dont be a hero

 

[louise_a]

I am currently of 19, my plan is to play to bogey, I know I will have pars and occassionally birdies, I also know I will have doubles or worse. I hope that I have more pars and doubles, thats a good round. In order to reduce myt handicap, my first aim is to reduce the number of doubles.

I tend to play each hole as I come to it, on most par 3s and par 5s I hope to get on the green in regulation, these are where I tend to make par or better. on par 4s, most are out of range or long iron or wood away, so I just go for a decent short and hope to get close enough with my 4th to have a chance at a par, but am perfectly hppy with a bogey on these. Obviously I know I am going to hit the odd poor shot, I just hope it doesnt do too much damage.

I also try to be a bit circumspect regarding club selection, especially if there is danger around the green.

 

[JustOne]

One shot comes to mind when I was with Smiffy at Bearwood Lakes..... he had blocked a drive about 5yrds into the rough and there were several small trees around, we discussed his shot and all he had to do was punch one out onto the fairway through a large gap in the trees, not being greedy.... my final words were "hit it hard enough to make it to the middle of the fairway, you've got 50yds to work with"..... he then quit on the shot and duffed it 4yds tight behind one of the small trees into an unplayable lie.

My mindset is along the lines of.... "what have I got to do here, and what have I got to do to make that happen?"

 

[cookelad]

Go where the mowers go!

 

[HickoryShaft]

Well I played for several years at 26 ish then had time off and on returning to the game a couple of years back was determined to improve to 18.

No matter how hard I tried I kept throwing away good rounds - the turning point for me was course management.

I kept track of several rounds and then looked at the holes where I generally do OK and kept playing those the same way but more importantly those where I was dropping a lot of shots. For these I came up with a different strategy that played to my own game - an iron off the tee to leave another iron shot in rather than a driver and wedge on holes where I was spraying it right or left (right mainly!) trying to knock the skin off it to get it close, or planning on the tee to play up in 2 and then chip on and accepting that this gives me my nett par rather than make a silly attempt to get there in regulation - mess that up and end up with a nett bogey or worse.

I drew myself up a plan for each hole and forced myself to play to iot every round for a few rounds. Of course you have to adjust when you mess one up but it is suprisingly less when you know what you are planning in the first place. The scores improved straight away

I reached 18 last year, regularly play to it now and have had a few rounds significantly below - hope to hit 16 this year if my game holds up.

Have a course plan and stick to it that my advice.

 

[doc333]

For the last 3 seasons I've been handicapped around the 18 mark, and its as frustrating as hell. Being at that level you know you will get plenty of pars and the odd birdie, but also accept that you can really screw up on the odd hole. Last summer I played 2 consecutive rounds of 74 gross (2 over) I thought I'd cracked it as I played 2 rounds on the trot with hardly any bogeys, but went out in a medal that weekend and was shyte, big time poo.

I go out with the intention of making par on every hole, knowing that a bogey is ok. The pressure's off and I accept that I can and have made it all the way to 10th just being 1 under, thinking I'm having a great round, but then you block one OB and scuff another one way in temper that puts you in the cabbage and before too long you could be looking at carding double figures for the hole. Just think that all those pro's on the tours are superb players yet they all screw up too.

Just get pleasure from the feel of some of your shots, when you know you've nailed it off the middle. Putting 2 of those shots together on the same hole puts you on for birdie. Usually however you'll find that you can play one of those shots on each hole, which leaves you to try an scramble to get a good score on the hole.

 

[GB72]

I have been around the 18 mark for about a year or so now. My focus is still on a good contact and to try and avoid the duffs etc. I try to aim for the middlle of the green rather than go for the flag as I am a confident putter and that helps me stay out of some trouble. In my mind I try and think about averaging 5 shots a hole to play to or around my handicap. It helps when I have a bad hole and hit a 7 as in my mind I only need to par one of the par 3s to get those shots back and keep to my average.

 

[Baldyeagle]

Course management - Best advice I ever received was to avoid half/two-thirds swings close to the green but instead to try to leave a full wedge into the green whenever possible (rather than trying to match my lower-handicap mates). Also tends to mean less chipping (high-handicapper's usual weakness).